Medical School is probably one of the hardest (if not the hardest) types of professional school out there. It is literally a job. Most schools are scheduled 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.everyday for their coursework during the first and second year. It is much tougher than undergraduate school which has the flexibility of choosing when you want to go to class and not having to attend every single day (I was lucky enough in my first semester to have class on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday). Beyond that, Residents can work up to 80 hours a week EVERY week. It is legal to even work up to 28 hours at one time. It is an incredibly intense and beyond stressful career so why would someone even consider this?
The human connection is the single most important part of medicine. In a medical school interview, you could guarantee in one way or another that schools will ask why you desire to put yourself through hell to become a physicians. For the love of all that is good and holy, DON'T SAY BECAUSE I WANT TO HELP PEOPLE. Literally that is the most generic answer and medical schools will automatically rule you out from that moment on. Plus, that is the entire point of the medical profession. Everyone is there to help otherwise no one would ever actually get better. Instead of being awfully lackluster, you should have and be able to share a personal story of what it truly means to enter into this career.
Here is mine. I grew in a very matriarchal family with a highly strong, independent female sense. My grandmother, being the matriarch, was definitely the most influential person, behind my own mother, in helping develop myself as a human being. She was strong, knew exactly what she wanted and wasn't afraid to share her opinion. Even with her strong sense of self, she knew exactly how important compassion and giving back was to helping the community. She volunteered much of her time with church projects and feeding the homeless. She inspired me to work hard and that being a strong woman was something that I had a right to be. Without her, I would not be who I am. She suffered through many different medical problems late in her life. She had 2 knee replacements, a brain tumor removal and endured three strokes. If it wasn't for those physicians who cared for her, she would not have lived nearly as long as she did and I may not have even met her. I thank God everyday for those Doctors because they gave her a little more time to spend with my family and share her wisdom. I know those physicians truly made a difference to my family because they never talked above us, they were undeniably compassionate and they were just all in all, human. I loved my grandmother with all of my heart and I will pay it forward the gift I was given from those physicians to people who I will help in the future because medicine is about changing lives whether it is big (major surgery) or small (a normal check up).
Not every story has to be life changing or monumental because everyone is different, When I attended a medical symposium this past weekend, an admission advisor for FIU asked the same question to a break out group I was in. Everyone had their own story to tell. From a women who was born prematurely and battled health issues all her life to a man born into an orphanage in India that was saved by a group of doctors on a mission trip. Those stories all had one thing in common, they portrayed a sense of humanity.
So why Medical School? It is up to you to decide that for yourself.
Tip (FIU COM admissions):
Try and Record yourself or write down why you chose to be a physician and see watch or read what your answer is. You may be surprised with what you come up with.
